2011-11-04

The Black Hole

So what happens if your Toronto Blue Jays don’t re-sign Type A free agent Mr. Kelly
Johnson to play 2B next season?

Since the free agent class this year is.....well.....pretty weak and the farm system can only be described as "noticeably thin" at the
position - even that might be too complimentary - we somehow found the initiative to examine all the other rosters in baseball and cherry pick a few potential candidates for his replacement if when the
brain trust decides to explore the trade route.

Like Northwood Mortgage, we’re
working hard just for you!

A few things to consider:

Most MLB second basemen were either drafted or developed as shortstops. That
being said there was absolutely zero chance we were going to look over all the Minor
League players in every system, especially the ones below A Ball and try to guess who won’t stick at SS. As such,
only players listed as 2B were included.

Whomever is picked up will probably end up hitting 8th or 9th in the order. Therefore it isn't downright essential that an impact player is acquired. That's quite a luxury.

All players in tiers 1, 2, 3 and 4 are currently listed on their
team’s 40 man roster while the players in tier 5 are not.

Tier 1: The studs

These players are the young, controllable,
high upside type guys that any GM craves. They project as starters right now.

Dustin Ackley 1988/02/26 1st round 2nd pick 2009 Only on this list because you’d call me stupid
if he wasn’t. Pretty much untouchable right now. Bat control is fantastic. He will hit in the Majors.

Danny Espinosa 1987/04/25 3rd round 2008 This guy can hit bombs and steal bases at the
big league level. Contact? Not so much. Yet.

Neil Walker 1985/09/10 1st round 11th pick 2004 In his first full season he played 159
games. A big body and a big bat to match.

Jose Altuve 1990/05/06
amateur free agent 2007 Clearly
rushed up to the big league level but can you really blame them?

Tier 2: The buy low candidates

These guys are still starting on their clubs. For now.

Gordon Beckham 1986/09/16 1st round 8th pick 2008 Pretty much all of his offensive numbers have been in a steady
decline since his rookie campaign. Plus defender.

Darwin Barney
1985/11/08 4th round 2007 Never really hit for a lot of power. Pretty much an all around unspectacular player yet still serviceable.

Tier 3: The best of the rest

AKA the Marco Scutaro category

Current back up, platoon or utility men.

Trevor Plouffe 1986/06/15 1st round 20th pick 2004 He hit 15 bombs in less than 200 at bats
in the International League (AAA)

Eric Sogard 1986/05/22 2nd round 2007 Walks more than he strikes out. Looks like
a doubles machine in waiting.

How
many option years - if any – these players have left would need
to be known prior to completing a trade. Some of these guys might be
ready to start in 2012. That was a purposefully vague sentence. A full
or even partial year in AAA would probably be beneficial for the player and Super 2 is a
bitch.

Tommy Field 1987/02/22 24th round 2008 Made the jump from AA to the Majors probably because of his glove. His power looks legit.
So do the strike outs.

Ivan De Jesus 1987/01/05 2nd round 2005
Consistent success at every stop in the Minors.

Jeudy Valdez 1989/05/05 non drafted free agent in 2005ish.
Played SS all this year and 2B all last year. Shown some decent pop
and better wheels. Dominican birth certificate could be a concern. Needs some time in AA but could move fast.

Tier 5: The prospects

We
only took our search as far down as High A ball. Had to draw the line
somewhere. Feel free to tell us all about the guys we missed.

Henry Rodriguez
1990/02/09 non drafted free agent 2007 Hasn’t
posted an average under .300 since 2007. Say what you want about batting
average as a stat but that just has to count for something. Never played
above the AA level. Great
power/speed combo. Switch hitter. Consider him the priority player on this list.

Yah I don't understand the love for Hech either, he's like Gose, all the potential in the world but he has given us no reason to think that he will reach it.

I'm really hoping to reunite Yunel with his buddy from Atlanta Martin Prado. He can lead off and let Yunel move down to second and he can shift around the diamond helping out Mike McCoy so as not to expose his middling D.

I think he's got two more years of arbitration so we can always move Yunel to second if Hech ever figures it out.

If the Jays can get Cardenas or Sogard I would also be very happy. Let K Johnson go to some contender, hopefully Detroit (we get their draft pick) and we give Sogard/Cardenas the chance they are not going to get being stuck behind Jemille Weeks.

Hech won't be in the majors to start next year, his bat isn't there yet but that doesn't mean he is far. As for his defense, he will never play 2B! He will be our SS and either Yunel will be moved to 2B or we will find someone else. To say he loses his defensive value at 2B is silly, he is strong enough to play anywhere on the IF, but there aren't many better at SS so it's a moot point!

35-year old FA Aaron Miles. He hit .270, with an obp of .314. Have him bat near the bottom of the lineup. Plus defender, he can maybe scrounge 3-5 hr, and 50 rbi. He walks little and strikes out about 1/9 ab. Good contact hitter. Made 500k last season. A nice stop-gap until AA finds someone young.

Eric Sogard, the obp. would be nice to have in the lineup if he can transfer it to the major league level.

The tier 1 guys ain't goin' nowhere, and the rest are either too far away or not what I would consider everyday players. Sogard's obp. and doubles power makes him the most intriguing possibility of the lot.

If Sogard is unavailable then move Lawrie back to second and trade some outfielders/pitching for a 3b'er like Chase Headley.

What about that cuban kid we signed to play SS for the Jays? The one the Jays outbid the Yankees for? Why not move him to second base and having both him and Escobar guarding the middle would be a real black hole for ground balls.

Move Lawrie to 2B his natural position. Keep Bautista on 3B.Then we just have a hole in RF to fill which is an easier position to fill.(Snyder, Serra, Davis... Goose... internally)(Beltran, Willingham,Pierre, Ross, JD Drew... etc as free agents.)

Adeiny Hechavarria loses most of his defensive value playing 2nd? A good infielder is a good infielder, and the ability to play on either side of the diamond is a long term benefit to Adeiny. Personally I would like to see these prospects given the opportunity to show if they are even close to what everyone has planned out for them. Let them play and lose as a team, just like the Atlanta Braves of the 80's, and when they win, they will be that much better.